Method of protecting and decorating surfaces



J. F. OBYRNE.

METHOD 0F PROTECTING AND DECORATING SURFACES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.I2.I9I1. IIENEwED IULY I9l 1919.

1,331,822. Patented Feb. 24, 1920.

WI TN ESSES A TTORNE YS.

` It is also recognized that much vtime and in the accompanying drawin y UNITED 'sfrariazs PATENT, OFFICE.

JOSEPH FRANCIS OBYRNE, OF TONOPAI-I, NEVADA.

vlV'I'll'lHOD 0F PROTECTING AND DECORATING SURFACES. l

Application led- February 12, 1917, Serial No. 148,193.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH FRANCIS OBYRNE, a citizen of the United States of America, and residing at Tonopah, in the State of Nevada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Protecting and Decorating Surfaces, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates' to an improved method of protecting and decorating surfaces and to the article produced thereby.

The protection and decoration of surfaces is commonly obtained by the application of paint, varnish, shellac, and thev like, directly to the surface to be protected and decorated. The present practice of protecting anddecorating surfaces is capable of improvement in several particulars. Foremost among the disadvantages of' the pres e'nt practice is the difficulty of obtainingv smooth, highly polished, painted, varnished or like surfaceswhich will have the desired degree of luster. As is well known, such high finishes are attained only by expert work and the exercise of considerable care.

labor are necessary to produce highly finished coated surfacesand hence another distinct disadvantage, namely, the expenseof the present method. Finally7 the protective and decorative coating applied to the surface is exposed so thatthe coating is readily injured by contact with the element-s, and by oxidation.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved method for protecting and decorating surfaces andthe product therefrom which is characterized in that the surfaces may be treated economically to produce a durable decorative and protective coating and in that the luster of the coating is of improved quality.

Other objects andadvantages will appear in the following description and in the appended claims.

The method and product are illustrated Us, in which- Figure lis a face view of the decorative and protective material;

' Fig. 2 is a magnified cross sectional view showing .the manner of applying the mate rialto the surface to be decorated; and

Figs. 3, 4:, andV 5 are magnified cross sec! tional views, showingvarious other applications of the method.

Referring to these-drawings and particui Specification of Letters Patent.

Renewed July 19, 1919. Serial No. 312,108.

larly to Figs. ll and 2; reference a indicates the surface to be decorated. The material Patented Feb. 24., 1920. y

to be decorated and protected may be anything whatever, and surface a need not be finished for rough, irregular surfaces may be treated equally as' well as the smoothest ones. The paint, varnish, or other coating material employed is not directly applied to the surface a, for necessarily this would result in thedisadvantages of the ordinary method. That is to say, that even if surface a were absolutely smooth, a smooth surface on the paint or the like applied to surface a, could be only a proximated and this only with difficulty anld expense. A protective and transparent sheet b is applied to surface i and upon sheet I) the coating of paint e or the like is applied. Sheet b is transparent and any suitable transparent materia-l may be employed. Celluloid may be used and issatisfactory except for its inflammable qualities, and there are other preferably flexible materials, not readily inflammable, and closely resembling Celluloid in outward appearance, which are lpreferred. One example of such material is that now largely used in moving picture films. The invention is, however, in its broader aspect independent of the particular kind of transparent material, and the examples herein given are merely illustrative. The surfaces of sheet are preferably smooth, and the materials closely allied to Celluloid generally have exceptionally smooth glasslike sur faces. Upon the smoothness of the surfaces of sheet I), the degree of luster obtained by use of the method depends, as will appear.

The paint c (indicated in Fig. 1 by line shading for the color blue) is applied to the surface Z of sheet b, and the painted surface is applied to surface a, as shown in Fig. 2, so that the paint is seen .only'through the transparent sheet b. The paint c need not -be applied with particular care to the transyof Vuniformity in the outer surface of the paint coating, the inner surface, which is contiguous to surface al, must necessarily be smooth and uniform and to a degree div rectly corresponding to the smoothness and color and hasa high degree of luster which 4is not obtainable in any other .manner known Ato me as convenientand e'flicientlas this described. The result of high luster necessarily follows from the fact that the visible surface of the paint is made smooth by adhesion to the smooth surface of the transparent sheet. It will be obvious that the painted surface, having improved luster, may be obtained rapidly and at a minimum expense, since care, expert labor', and the usual' repeated rubbing down processes are rendered unnecessary. Furthermore, by the method the paint, itself a protecting material, is protected by the transparent sheet I) and accordingly the surface treated by this method is particularly durable.

The invention is capable of general application in the-protection and. decoration of all surfaces of whatever character. It may be used to advantage in lunchrooms, stores, and other public places; The method may also be advantageouslym'ployed in protecting and decorating autbmobiles.- As is well.

known, the highly finished surfaces of the latter soon lose their luster'owing to eX- posure to the elements and the constant bombardment of minute dirt particles, sand, and the like. The described method, therefore, provides a particularly useful way to obtain the desired lustrous surfaces and to preserve them once they have been obtained.

If desired, the outer surface of sheet b may bein addition painted as indicated at e in Fig. 3, and, when the coating e becomes worn or loses its luster, it may be readily taken off with a suitable paint remover, revealing the fresh, highly lustrous coating c through the transparent sheet. This method may be practised not only to secure a fresh surface but also, if desired, to obtain a fresh surface of different color. Additional colors or additional fresh surfaces may be obtained by the method shown in Fig. 4. Here the surface a is painted, rubbed down, and polished in the usual way, the coating being indicated by reference f. A sheet g iof protective material, as flannel or thc like, is then laid upon the coating f and there-after the transparent sheet b having the double' coatings c and e, as described in connection with Fig. 3, is applied. As many fresh surfaces or as many different colored surfaces as desired may be obtained by adding other sheets b having single or double coatings. Thus in Fig. 5 a second protective sheet g" may be laid upon the coating e and a sheet b having coatings c and e may then be applied to the protective sheet g.

When applied to surfaces 4which undergo repeated washings--and therefore re eated scratchings-su-ch as the surfaces o automobile bodies, the method exhibits a very distinct advantage-namely, all scratch marks and oxidation dullness may be removed by buffing. To illustrate: Assume that the outersurface of b, ',Fig. 2, to be vdulled by repeated washing, oxidation, and.

high polish which will restore the lusterv and brand new appearance. v Thus an improved'method of protecting and decorating surfaces has been provided which is characterized in that durable surfaces of exceptional luster may be economically obtained. The 'use of the word paint 'throughout the description is intended to include paint, varnish, or any like substance which may bel applied for a similar purpose to a sheet of transparent material, as Celluloid or like substances or any substances such as glass which may embody the inventionl for the purpose described, all well known in commerce. The invention has been described in a preferred form with detailed variations for illustrative purposes,

butthe scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description.

WhatI claim isl. The method of protecting and decorating surfaces which consists in applying a` coat of paint,/varnish, or the like to one side of each of plurality of transparent coverings, irjfgplyingone of said coverings. to the surf e with the painted side in contiguous vrelation therewith and in successively applying the other coverings painted material when thecoat becomes worn to rey veal a fresh, lustrous inner coat.

3. The method of protecting and vdecorating surfaces treated with paint or the like,

which consists in applying a covering of protective material to such a surface, in applying a coat of paint, varnish, or the like to one side of transparent material, and in then applying said material as a protective covering to the first named covering with the paint contiguous thereto, whereby the painted Surface is protected and decorated and may be revealed when desired by removing said protective coverings. l

l. The method of protecting and decorating a surface treated With paint or the like, which consists in applying' a coveringvof protective material to the surface, in applying a coat of paint, varnish, or the like to both sides of transparent material, and in applying said material to the first-named covering, whereby the surface is protected and decorated with a plurality of coats which may he successively revealed.

5. The method of protecting and decorating surfaces which consists in applying paint, varnish, or the like to both surfaces of each of a plurality of transparent cover'- ings, inapplying one -ot said coverings to the surface to be decorated, in applying a covering of protective material to the lastnamed covering, and in alternately applying other of said transparent covering and other protective coverings to the irst transparent covering in superposed relation, whereby said surface is protected and decorated with a plurality of coats which may be successively revealed.

JOSEPH FRANCIS OBYRNE. 

